ok, so there are some issues that are happening now in the EPL.for fellow avid warcraft gamers, you would think that i'm gonna talk about the Eastern Plaguelands. but sadly, there's not really any issues happening in the Eastern Plaguelands. the only things there now are probably some skeletons and zombies walking around for you guys to slaughter. but it's an extremely high level area so please do not venture out there if you've got no business around there. haha.
ok. so the issues that i'm more concerned about is the English Premier League. let's tackle them one by one. pun not intended there. ahahhaha.
1) Should Man Utd rid of Alex Ferguson?
Well, this question should have carried more weight in the preseason. but looking at how United have managed in the last few games. I would think that Sir Alex's ass is more or less safe in the hotseat. With the sale of RVN, many expected the goals to dry up for Man Utd, but somehow he has managed to get Saha and Rooney performing so admirably upfront.
Considering the age of both Giggs and Scholes, people would wonder if they are able to endure such a long hard season ahead, but looking at the squad Utd has, they still have the likes of Richardson, Fletcher, and even Park to enter the Fray. with Alan Smith yet to return to full action, Utd already have to luxury of rotating their strikers. Solskjaer is back but i really suspect if he still have got what it takes to lead the line for Utd.
One good thing about this Utd team is that their players have got the capability of playing in more then 1 position. Richardson, Fletcher and Park, all can play down the middle of down the wing. Giggs have been asked to play the 'Scholes' role a few times last season. And the much documented 'holding' role have been covered by no less then O'Shea, Smith and even Rio Ferdinand. And with the addition of Carrick, and in a few days time, i guess even Owen Hargreaves would join up with the Red Devils, there should be no shortage of 'holding' midfielders for Utd.
The one and only weakness i might suggest is the suspect defense. Rio Ferdinand is a classy defender no doubt. but he is not consistent enough to be considered a world class defender. Mikael Silvestre is a major weakness as he is prone to very very poor lapses in concentration often causing the team unwanted problems. Wes Brown and O'Shea both offers good games here and there but they do not perform enough to be a first choice in the Utd team. Nemanja Vidic and Gabriel Heinze. Both have impressed me last season. They are the few good buys that Sir Alex have bought in the previous few seasons. solid and distributes the ball well, they need to stay healthy more often so that their services can be maximised.
By building a team that revolves around the speed and aggressiveness of both Rooney and Ronaldo, Sir Alex has shown that he has not lost it yet. He still have got what it takes to handle this new generation football world. He might not be as fiery as before, but his knowledge of the EPL is second to none. He has seen it through everything with Utd, and I believe bar any freak accident and retirement, he will still be the best man to lead them through at least even the next season.
2) Liverpool to provide the stiffest title challenge?
Being a Liverpool fan, when even the red of liverpool runs in my blood, I would be somewhat bias in answering this question. However, I do not like the tag of being favourites to oust Chelsea. It somehow adds pressure to the team and to the players, which i feel would not work to our favour. Benitez have brought alot of new faces to the team and i would still want to believe that he has bought well. I've made alot of noise last season about how Cisse was the only player that possesses geniune pace in the whole of the Liverpool team. The strike force of Crouch and Morientes would never be able to chase down those long passes sent down by either Alonso or Gerrard. More often then not these attacks are often broken down due to their lack of pace. However this season, Bellamy upfront, Pennant on the right and Gonzales on the left would really prove to be alot for defenders to handle. Imagine 3 lightning flashes coming it you.
Pace was the difference between Liverpool and the other top 3 last season. Giggs and Ronaldo, Robben and Joe Cole, Reyes and Henry. They can tear defenses apart by just their quick movement. But now, we're right up there with them. The most important buy of all, i would like to believe is Jermain Pennant. Last season, Liverpool tried a host of players at rightwing. and none of them was able to do anything productive there. Cisse, Garcia, Kromkamp, and even Gerrard played at rightwing. By having Pennant this season, it frees up Gerrard to be able to play in the center where he will be the most productive and authoritive.
Much as much as i hate to say this, but Liverpool is still very much a one man team to a certain extent. Gerrard is the man. Gerrard is Liverpool. He is a one man destroyer, he breaks up attacks, and starts attacks on his own. Just look at him pick up the ball in the middle of the park and drive forward, you'll get what i mean. The way he bamboozles pass players is really like a tank. Strong and fast, he'll shove you aside and lets you eat his dust.
Dirk Kuyt. The latest Liverpool addition. He has impressed on his debut. However i believe that it's still early days to say anything. Remember El Hadji Diouf? Scored 2 goals if i'm not wrong on his debut against Southampton. and what happens after that? well, not much that i can remember. There have been too many examples that i don't even dare to mention.
Defense was Liverpool's forte. It's one of the hardest to breakdown, especially at Anfield. Very well organised and protected by either Hamann, Alonso or Sissoko. But Hamann have left and I tink Sissoko might just be able to emulate his performances. He has been very very hardworking and full of running on all the occasions i've seen him. Not afraid to put in tackles, reminds me of a certain Patrick Viera when he just arrived at Arsenal. But the problem now is Sami Hyppia. I say he's a weakness because i feel that nowadays, even i can run faster then him. And i don't exactly run very fast. Even though his reading of the game is still superb, but he is really too slow to be of any effect against speed demons like Aaron Lennon, or even Darren Bent. Maybe Benitez should slowly blood Daniel Agger into the game and ease him into partnering Jamie Carragher. The other new signing, Gabriel Pauletta looked to be disastrous in the preseason games that he have played. I think he needs maybe more games in the reserves first.
I shall say that it very much depends on Dirk Kuyt. If he is able to gel into the team and plays like he does in the Dutch league, I will say that Liverpool will certainly have a chance at snatching the title from Chelsea.
